The Funeral
by TheLittleAddiction
Summary: So, some things happened and I'm sad so I thought I would focus that sadness into something. I based this story off of a post I saw that said 'he went to the funeral alone.' It centers around Remus. It's meant to be sad. Talks of character death.


_Remus Lupin sat on the Hogwarts Express reading Hogwarts: A History. He was a very quiet young man. He never had many friends. Whenever he did get close to people, he would pull away because he was afraid they would find out about his lycanthropy. When the first friend he ever made found out, he ran away and told the rest of the village. They had to move away. Remus hated his disease, but there was nothing he could do. So, he sat alone on the train determined to make it through school without anybody finding out. The only one who knew was Dumbledore. Remus already admired the man and owed him so much; he offered Remus a place at the school despite his affliction. _

_Sitting alone on the train, Remus was interrupted from his readings by two young boys his age. One had messy black hair and the other had longer hair. Both boys were laughing. Remus remained where he was, he pretended not to notice; he thought it best to just ignore them. Until one of the boys spoke up._

_"Can we sit in here with you? Everywhere else is full." The boy with the messy black hair asked Remus._

_Remus looked up and nodded his head._

_"I'm James by the way, James Potter and this is Sirius Black." James said gesturing to the boy with long hair beside him._

_Remus simply nodded at them._

_"What's your name?" James pushed Remus for an answer._

_"Remus, Remus Lupin." Remus finally answered. James stuck his hand out to Remus and Remus tentatively took it. Remus had no idea how important these two young boys would become to him._

The day was cloudy and cold, as if thousands of Dementors were circling above the people walking down Godric's Hollow. They walked from a broken home to the graveyard. They were all draped in black clothing, tears streaming down their faces; except for one man. Remus Lupin walked down the road behind two caskets. Wands were levitating the caskets, including his. He walked slowly, never stopping, never crying. He had grown accustomed to hiding his pain when he was younger. He was only twenty years old, but he looked and felt so much older. The sadness that flowed through him nearly ripped him apart. He felt as if he was going to bleed to death from the pain of it.

_"Where do you go every month Remus?" James asked one day of their first year. Remus had been afraid of this. He knew someone would notice sooner or later._

_"I-uh, nowhere." Remus replied._

_"Come on you can tell us." Sirius said._

_"Yeah, you can tell us Remus." Peter Pettigrew said. He was a small boy who had found the trio early in their first year. They quickly accepted the odd boy as one of their own._

_"Hagrid asked for my help with some stuff, that's all." Remus lied._

_James, Sirius, and Peter didn't believe him. The next month when Remus disappeared again, James, Sirius, and Peter followed. They discovered his secret. When they confronted him about it, Remus cried. He didn't want to lose the best friends he ever had. That's when Sirius hugged him. James told him they wouldn't leave him. Peter said it was kind of cool that he could change forms._

_Months later, James gathered the other two together and told them he had found a book in the restricted section about transforming shapes. Animagus, it was called; they would be able to change into animals at will. They worked and worked at becoming this for Remus. It wasn't until their second year that they finally mastered the craft. Remus wasn't alone in his transformations anymore._

The march to the graveyard was slow. The caskets floated through the air almost like ghosts. The muggles of the area were told to stay in their homes for the day. They obeyed. Members of the Order surrounded the caskets as if protecting it walking beside them and behind them; their wands levitating the caskets. Dumbledore led the way. Nobody said a word. It was eerily quiet, save the few sobs that broke the silence every so often. Remus made up the end of the caskets. He stood behind his friends one last time.

_It was a particularly sunny day when Remus had made his way to the Potter's after one of his transformations. James and Sirius had been unable to be with him due to the Order requiring them to do work in the fight against Him. He was injured; fresh cuts cut deep into his back. A pregnant Lily was home that day. She rushed to him as he collapsed on the Potter's kitchen floor. She worked to clean his wounds. _

_"I'm a monster." Remus said that day._

_"You're not a monster." Lily said. "This heart" Lily pressed her palm to his heart and repeated the words she always said to him "is where you truly live." _

Everyone offered their condolences to Remus. They all said the understood, but no one did. These people were his family where he had none. Three of his family members were dead. One was an escaped convict who had killed the other one and betrayed the other two to Him. He couldn't believe it when he was told. That day when they died, a part of him died as well. They had always been there for him and now they were gone. As the line of mourners finally reached the graveyard, the coffins were lowered into their graves.

_Just days before it happened they were happy and laughing. They had all gathered at the Potter's house to enjoy a meal as they did every so often. Despite the war, they still had each other. Lily and James sat on opposite sides of each other. Sirius sat by James. Remus sat by Lily. Peter sat at the head of the table. Remus watched as James fed baby Harry. They had all laughed Sirius transformed into a big dog and played with baby Harry after the meal was done. Everyone laughed when Lily scolded James for letting Harry fly on his little broom around sharp objects. When it was time to leave, Lily pulled Remus into a hug. She always hugged him tighter and just a bit longer than the others because she knew he needed. No one ever said a word about it, because they knew too. James hugged him too and patted him on the back. Then he, Peter, and Sirius left as one. Sirius hugged him and Peter shook his hand. Then they all disapparated, parting ways forevermore. Remus had no idea that would be the last time he ever saw his best friends together._

Remus watched as the final mourners left. Then he was alone with his best friends one last time. He had held his sadness in for so long that it finally took him. He broke down over the Potter's grave, falling to his knees as his sobs became so loud they were almost howls. His best friends, his family, were gone. The people who took him in when no one else did were no more. Remus Lupin was alone again.

When the residents of the area came out of their houses, the muggles, they passed him by and went on with their normal lives. They pitied him, but could do nothing for him. They thought it was odd that he was alone. What they thought was even odder was a black dog who sat behind a tree watching the man cry. The strange thing about this dog was that it seemed to be crying as well, tears rolled down its face as the lonely old man continued to howl into the night.


End file.
